This nonprovisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. xc2xa7 119(a) on Patent Application No. 101 34 380.9 filed in Germany on Jul. 14, 2001, the entire contents of which are herein incorporated by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a housing with an electrical circuit accommodated therein, in particular for use in a motor vehicle, including a top housing part and a bottom housing part, at least one printed circuit board that is separated at least in part from the bottom housing part and has at least one electrical component, and at least one plug element that extends through the bottom housing part and has a plug end that extends into and/or through the printed circuit board from the side of the latter that faces the bottom housing part and is electrically contacted in the area of the printed circuit board.
2. Description of the Background Art
As a general rule, in housings of the aforementioned type, the problem exists of preventing mechanical stress on the electrically conductive connection between the at least one plug end and the printed circuit board or components or traces arranged on said printed circuit board. Solutions known from the prior art provide for complex mechanical connections between connector strips bearing plug elements and the printed circuit board. Such mechanical connections entail relatively high manufacturing expenses and thus comparatively high production costs of such a housing.
The problem that the present invention proposes to solve is the creation of a housing of the aforementioned type which largely avoids mechanical stress on the electrically conductive connection between the at least one plug end and the printed circuit board while being economical to manufacture.
This is achieved in accordance with the invention in that the at least one plug element has at least one support element extending from the plug element in the space between the bottom housing part and the printed circuit board in such a way that a section of it rests against the side of the bottom housing part facing the printed circuit board. The at least one support element is thus an integral constituent of the plug element and can be manufactured by simple means, for example by stamping, when the plug element is manufactured. For example, in the event of tensile force on the plug element away from the printed circuit board, the support element can transmit the force acting on the plug element to the bottom housing part so that the electrically conductive connection between the plug end and printed circuit board is not stressed mechanically.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a section of the at least one support element rests against the side of the printed circuit board facing the bottom housing part. In this way, in the event of a compressive force on the plug element toward the printed circuit board, the force acting on the plug element is transmitted by the support element to the printed circuit board so that the electrically conductive connection between the plug end and printed circuit board is not stressed mechanically in this case either.
In this context, the at least one support element can extend essentially perpendicular from the plug element with regard to the direction of connection between the bottom housing part and the printed circuit board. The support element here can be designed to be essentially lug-shaped or stud-shaped, for example.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the top housing part has at least one pressure element, a section of which rests against the side of the printed circuit board facing away from the bottom housing part. Thus, a force exerted on the printed circuit board, for example because of the aforementioned compressive force on the plug element, is transmitted to the top housing part by means of said pressure element. In this way, the printed circuit board is fixed in place in the housing, while mechanical stress on the printed circuit board is also prevented by the transmission of force to the at least one pressure element.
The top housing part here can have at least one housing rib, upon which is arranged the at least one pressure element. A rib of this type, for example running transversely through the housing, represents a very simple way of attaching the pressure elements to the housing. For example, the at least one pressure element can be designed to be stud-shaped here. Such a design minimizes manufacturing costs for the pressure elements.
Advantageously, provision can be made for the bottom housing part to be essentially plate-shaped.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the top housing part and the bottom housing part are fastened to each other by means of a snap-in connection, wherein latching projections located preferably on the top housing part can engage behind detents located on the bottom housing part. As a result of this snap-in connection, the top housing part is secured against being pulled off.
Moreover, because of the snap-in connection and the aforementioned pressure and support elements, it is possible to assemble the housing simply by pressing it together. Consequently, assembly of the housing can be extremely economical.
Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.